Sacrifice

Film shows reality of personal goals

If You Go: This month’s installment of Arizona Western College Foundation’s ongoing film series Thursdays at the Theatre, “Over the Limit” will be shown Thursday at 7 p.m. in the Historic Yuma Theater, 254 S. Main St. The screening includes a short film and hosted discussion. Runtime of the feature is 73 minutes. Admission is $5, $2.50 for AWC students and staff.

When we watch an athletic performance, we know what we’re seeing is just the tip of the iceberg – a culminating moment made possible by a lifetime of dedication, by hour after hour of tenacity, sweat and tears. In fact, that knowledge makes our appreciation of the spectacle all the more acute.

Our mythical view of an athlete is that she challenges herself to improve, perhaps with the help of a compassionate coach who refines her technique and nurtures her confidence. We don’t want to consider, though, that at the highest levels of world-class competition those interpersonal relationships might border on antagonism and even abuse.

A documentary like “Over the Limit” will go a long way in curing us of the illusions created by glamorous media coverage and dramatic biopics, and will force us to take an unblinking look at the ordeals of a champion’s training. This recent documentary follows Rita Mamun, the 20-year-old Russian practicing the glamorous sport of rhythmic gymnastics, in the months leading to the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. In it we get a very different story than the one shown in the public spotlight.

Animal trainers

Among the predictable hardships Mamun suffers during this period of her life is alienation from her loved ones. Her boyfriend, also a member of the Russian Olympic squad, is training in the United States, and mostly they have to content themselves with FaceTime chats during short breaks in Mamun’s schedule. Only rarely does Mamun get to go home to relax with her mom, and she never even sees her dad, who is in the hospital battling cancer.

So her family for the time being consists of her teammates, who in public talk a convincing line of solidarity and support but who probably dream of taking her spot on the podium, and a pair of coaches, who employ a startling array of psychological techniques to her training.

The good cop in the scenario is Amina Zaripova, who herself narrowly missed a medal in rhythmic gymnastics at the ‘96 Olympics in Atlanta. She showers Mamun with sympathy and kisses, all the while somehow reminding her of the inadequacy of her efforts.

The bad cop is the head coach of the Russian national team, Irena Viner, who is never shown to have a word of praise. In fact Viner, who has led countless young women to World and Olympic medals during her tenure of nearly half a century, is usually outright insulting and profane toward our heroine. The Russian grand dame of the sport, she appears as an archetypal villain, beyond empathy.

“We need to train her like a dog,” says Viner.

Not the destination

Any viewer must be amazed at the fact that the documentarians would be allowed to record such raw reality. None of the subjects even seems to be aware of the hand-held camera, which trails them in even their most private moments – all edited together without voiceover commentary or interview context.

If anything, Viner seems to relish the attention paid to her potty-mouthed tirades. It’s reported that, when she saw the footage, she was openly proud of the persona it revealed.

For her part, Mamun almost always appears stressed, upset, dispirited. Sometimes she complains quietly that she’s tired or sore, or objects that she’s only human. Indeed, she always seems to be working half-heartedly with her hoop, ball, clubs or ribbon; and we can’t imagine how she’s going to perform up to par when the time comes.

Will she give up and fade into obscurity, a tragic victim of lost potential? Will she crack under the strain of insecurity, like the tortured heroine in Darren Aronofsky’s “Black Swan?” The film doesn’t concern itself with the outcome, which will be revealed in any case by history, only with the journey.